2017/01/26

2017_01_25 a week of tracing old wiring. Lots replaced and track modified or extended where necessary.
Soon every fish plate will have droppers either side. Now that's security (and time consuming)
Some pictures.....

So first job was to overcome some problems with this point. Its a RailScale No.6 code 70. I keep breaking the throw bar, which means the mechanical connection between the Tortoise and point is set up wrong. Very little room to work with underneath. Still ongoing, solution not yet found.

And to the right of it and below, I have the SG loop into Wodonga that has not been completed.

As well I have spent a lot of time tracing that last 'short'. I now have a Yellow track power light on every command station, but I still get 6 beeps on start up, and a red flashing fault light on one station.
This tells me that I have two command stations hooked into the same track section. So I am moving around the layout tracing all wiring, and finding all insulators.
So far I have found every district is insulated. Starting to think, perhaps some defective insulators (more precisely one?) has allowed the rails to expand and touch. I have used other types of insulators as well as peco type insulators. I think Peco is a secure design?

First major fix was to relocate the reversing track sections from the other end of the island to this end. First reason, was that Evans double track Y points will be right where the reversers are presently situated. And secondly, this area is where two track districts actually join. That must be better than reversing in the middle of a district?
So this section from the bridge to the curve is the new reversing sections between the lower level island sections (BG and SG) and the layout around the outer walls of the room.

humph!! still a lot of wiring to re-rout including the three 240v power boards in this picture. The reversing sections were on lower level where Evans double Y point is leaning. It seems my railway has entered the age of prefab point construction, making for a shorter shutdown when installation is to be acted on.
I finished up replacing one point on the SG loop, because it was an insulfrog on criple road, and I could see that that frog was going to take a beating during running.

so here it is all finished except for the point motors. All I need to do is replace the missing sleepers. Then continue around from here and fill in a few gaps in the SG, Still more droppers to install as well. I am finding a lot of brads are pulling the sleepers down. Certainly over hit in. I am replacing these with Peco flat head tacks, being careful to locate the track only, not hold it down. No bent sleepers, and tacks can come out when ballast dries.

I did have the spaghetti neatly tied up with ties, however will have to do it again, when I am satisfied the wiring is complete and working as it should.
Cheers
Rod

Beginnings (Blog starts here)

About my Railway

The Australian National Railways was established by the Whitlam Federal Government following a commitment made in the 1972 election to invite the states to hand over their railway systems to the federal government. In July 1975 Australian National Railways was formed taking over the operations of the federal government owned Commonwealth Railways.

The state governments of South Australia and Tasmania whose railway systems were deeply in debt, accepted. During the next two years discussions between these two states and the federal government resulted in a number of staffing and operating agreements being made that resulted in all South Australian Railways services (except for the Adelaide metropolitan passenger network) and all Tasmanian Government Railways services transferring to Australian National Railway in March 1978, the latter being re-branded AN Tasrail.

At first Victoria declined to hand over its Railways, however a change of Government after Bolte retired meant Victoria could be absorbed into AN as well. Despite doing everything they could to tarnish ALP leader Clyde Holding, The ALP were able to defeat Hamer who was seen to be just another Bolte, doing more of the same into the future.

Clyde Holding handed over Victorian Railways to the Commonwealth where it prospered as a division of AN retaining its VR colours until later when AN decided to re-brand it as V/Line.

My Railway thus reflects what could have been ;)And of course National Rail (Pacific National) has no place in my little scenario. Australian National was never privatised and has continually taken East Coast loads off the Highways. As well many branch lines were upgraded and Whitlam's policy of decentralisation actually moved employment to towns with a ready pool of workers, which of course took the pressure of Melbourne which was starting to expand as bush kids moved away from the Country in search of education and employment ( just as Gough Whitlam envisaged it would do)Rod Young

N452 (Background photo)

At Wodonga after being towed into loco following my Kelly Street Accident. A semi load of dog food ran the level crossing derailing the 1220 Down Pass

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